In my last post, The Three-Act Structure, I talked about how this storytelling framework works. Today, I thought I would do a three-act analysis of Pride and Prejudice, one of my favorite books of all time.
Spoiler Alert! Obviously, we can’t talk about the structure of a book without mentioning the ending and giving away spoilers. Given how long this book has been around, I think the statute of limitations on spoilers has long since passed. So, if you haven’t read this book and you want to do so without spoilers, stop reading now. Go read the book first, then come back to this newsletter for this deep dive into its story structure.
Okay, let’s dive into our analysis of Pride and Prejudice.
ACT 1: At the beginning of the book, we see what normal life is like for the Bennet family. We see them interacting with each other, going to events, meeting friends, etc. The five promises are very clear (though because the chapters are short, they tend to span more than just the first chapter).
CHARACTER: Elizabeth Bennet is our protagonist, though she does not appear until Chapter 2. (She is mentioned in Chapter 1 in a conversation between her parents, but does not actually appear as a participant in the scene until the following chapter.) This might be a similar situation to our The Wainscott Weasel example from my last newsletter, where the character is more reserved so it makes sense for the author to hold back and introduce them a little later into the story. That said, because the chapters are so short, it doesn’t feel like we have to wait very long to meet Elizabeth. In the same vein, Mr. Darcy—the other member of the central couple—does not appear until Chapter 3.
VOICE: The voice of the narrator is very clear and opinionated. Just look at the opening line: “It is a truth universally acknowledged, that a single man in possession of a good fortune must be in want of a wife.” Right away we see the irony in that statement. It’s not the single man who is in want of a wife, but the other way around: a wannabe wife is in want of a single man with a good fortune.
WORLD: This story takes place in the English countryside of the early 1800s. While the first two chapters are mostly conversation between the characters, presumably taking place in a parlor of sorts, by the time we reach Chapter 3 we are out in the world at an assembly where the characters are interacting with each other and their friends. The story takes place in various different settings, from the great outdoors to the simple parlor of the Bennet estate, Longbourn. It also includes visits to lavish estates like Rosings Park (home of the antagonist, Lady Catherine) and Pemberley (Mr. Darcy’s home).
PROBLEM: There is a serious problem that overshadows the entire story and that is that in this period in England, women were not permitted to inherit land. Because Mr. Bennet had five daughters and no sons, the land is entailed away to his closest male relative: Mr. Collins. If Mr. Bennet were to die, his wife and daughters would be out of house and home… unless one of the daughters were to marry well. This is why Mrs. Bennet is so desperate to make sure at least one of her daughters marries a man of means. Keep in mind: while this problem may not be the central conflict of the book (MDQ:, Will Elizabeth and Mr. Darcy get together?) it does relate to that conflict and raises the stakes of the story.
EVENT: The event that kicks off the story is that a young, rich, and single man (Mr. Bingley) has moved into Netherfield, the estate next door. This event relates directly to the problem mentioned above. Mrs. Bennet is desperate to marry off at least one of her daughters and conveniently a young man of means has just come to the neighborhood.
PIVOT POINT 1: Elizabeth first meets Mr. Darcy at an assembly in Chapter 3, where he snubs her, saying: “She is tolerable: but not handsome enough to tempt me.” This is the external event that kicks off the first pivot point of the novel. The internal choice, however, does not come until Chapter 7, when her sister Jane falls ill while visiting the Bingleys. Immediately, Elizabeth pulls up her skirts and goes on foot to tend to her sister, “crossing field after field at a quick pace, jumping over stiles and springing over puddles…” Up until now she has been forced into Mr. Darcy’s presence simply because they are at the same social gatherings. This is the moment when, for the sake of her sister, she chooses to put herself in his presence even though she dislikes him.
ACT 2: This act can be summed up by two rules of three: “Boys, Boys, Boys” and “Road Trip!” Let’s examine how each rule of three works.
BOYS, BOYS, BOYS: There are three key suitors who pursue Elizabeth throughout the story. The first is Mr. Collins, her distant cousin who is set to inherit her father’s land. He tries to court her and when that fails, he turns around and marries her best friend, Charlotte Lucas. (So classy!)
The second suitor doesn’t really go anywhere, and this is Mr. Wickham. He starts out as a visitor in the nearby town of Meryton, then joins the militia. While he is staying in Meryton, he and Elizabeth cross paths multiple times and he confides in her, telling her the sad story of how Mr. Darcy wronged him. While Elizabeth is certainly attracted to him, this flirtation doesn’t go anywhere and eventually the militia leaves to go to Brighton, Mr. Wickham going with them.
The third suitor is Mr. Darcy himself. While Elizabeth is not interested in him in the slightest, he begins to develop feelings for her. At the center of the book he proposes (the worst proposal of all time) and she turns him down. He sends her a letter explaining himself and she begins to think maybe she misjudged him. They cross paths again later and his personality is much softer so Elizabeth starts to develop feelings for him. Eventually, they fall in love and get married.
As with any Rule of 3, the first two elements are similar—in this case they are relationships that don’t work out. The third element is different. The relationship takes a different trajectory, starting with animosity and ending with the two characters falling in love.
ROAD TRIP! There are also (sort of) three road trips that anchor Act 2 in Pride and Prejudice. The first is a trip that her sister Jane takes to London in the hopes of running into Mr. Bingley. The trip ends in failure, with Mr. Bingley’s sister snubbing Jane, leaving her demoralized and convinced that Mr. Bingley does not love her.
The second trip is one that Elizabeth takes to visit her friend Charlotte Lucas (now married to Mr. Collins). While there, she has the opportunity to visit Rosings Park, home of the pompous and imposing Lady Catherine and her sniveling daughter. Mr. Darcy also arrives at Rosings and it is on this trip that he makes the failed proposal.
The third trip is the one that Elizabeth takes to the Lakes with her aunt and uncle, Mr. and Mrs. Gardner. There they take a tour of Pemberley, Mr. Darcy’s home, thinking that he is away in London, only to have him arrive and surprise them. It is on this trip that Elizabeth’s opinions of Mr. Darcy begin to change.
Note: simultaneous with Elizabeth’s trip to the Lakes is her sister Lydia’s trip to Brighton at the invitation of Colonel Foster’s wife. While on this trip, she runs away with Mr. Wickam, thus cutting Elizabeth’s trip to the Lakes short. So, while there are actually four separate trips that take place in Act 2, they happen in three separate chunks of time, the third being different because that is where most of the drama happens.
MIDPOINT: A series of scenes make up the midpoint, starting with Mr. Darcy’s failed proposal, followed by his letter explaining himself, and culminating in that moment where Elizabeth says her famous line: “Till this moment, I never knew myself.” That line is in itself the embodiment of the classic midpoint. The main character looks inward and realizes they don’t like what they see and makes a choice as to how to move forward. That is precisely what happens when Elizabeth reads Mr. Darcy’s letter.
It is important also to note that this midpoint is what I like to call a False Failure. Most midpoints are a moment where it appears that the character is getting what they want, only to realize that it’s not all it’s cracked up to be. The latter type of midpoint is called a Temporary Triumph. A more rare alternative is the False Failure, where it seems like things have failed for the protagonist (in this case, her choice to reject the proposal and her realization that she has misjudged Mr. Darcy) and yet that supposed “failure” actually opens the door for the story to move in a more positive direction.
If Mr. Darcy hadn’t given the world’s worst possible proposal, they might not have argued and he never would have written his letter explaining his side of the situation. Without the letter, Elizabeth would never have had that moment of self-reflection and she would not have begun to have a change of heart toward Mr. Darcy. By that same token, if Elizabeth had not told Mr. Darcy off during the proposal, he likely would not have realized how big a jerk he was and he may not have mended his ways. For these reasons, the failed proposal was a necessary step in order for the relationship between Mr. Darcy and Elizabeth to move forward.
PIVOT POINT 2: Elizabeth receives a letter (external event) from her sister Jane telling her that Lydia (their youngest sister) has eloped with Mr. Wickham. Worse yet, it appears Mr. Wickham has no intention of marrying Lydia, bringing tremendous shame to the family. Mr. Darcy walks in on her moment of shock, just after she has read the letter, and she confides in him (internal choice) and tells him the whole story. He then leaves abruptly and she thinks that he is rejecting her, wanting to have nothing to do with her now that her family is in disgrace. As we later find out, he’s actually leaving in order to try to help.
ACT 3: Elizabeth and her aunt and uncle return to Longbourn and the uncle continues on to London to help with the search for Lydia. It takes a while before they hear anything, but eventually, they learn that her uncle has discovered Lydia and Mr. Wickham, and that they will marry in London. Of course, the truth is that the uncle must have had to bribe Mr. Wickham with a sizable sum of money in order to convince him to marry Lydia.
Once the marriage has taken place, Lydia and Mr. Wickham stop at Longbourn for a visit on their way to Newcastle (where he will now be stationed). During that visit, Lydia lets slip that Mr. Darcy was present at her wedding. Elizabeth questions her aunt about it and discovers that Mr. Darcy was the one who set the whole marriage up and dealt with all the money. A few days after the situation with Lydia is resolved, Mr. Bingley proposes to Jane and it now looks like things are going in a good direction for the Bennet family.
CLIMAX: Yet there is still unfinished business. Mr. Darcy and Elizabeth still have not gotten together, and one major obstacle stands in their way: Lady Catherine. As Mr. Darcy’s aunt, Lady Catherine objects to the possible match and she comes to Longbourn to convey her displeasure. Of course, at this point Elizabeth and Mr. Darcy are not engaged, and Elizabeth isn’t even sure if Mr. Darcy likes her, given how he behaved back when she first told him about the letter. Still, Lady Catherine’s accusations get under her skin and Elizabeth stands up for herself, refusing to back down and comply with Lady Catherine’s demand that should Mr. Darcy propose she would not accept. Instead she says her other famous line: “I am only resolved to act in that manner, which will, in my own opinion, constitute my happiness, without reference to you, or to any person so wholly unconnected with me.” This moment is the climax and it is important because it is the moment when Elizabeth stands up for her own happiness.
DENOUEMENT: Mr. Darcy and Elizabeth go for a walk and find themselves separated from the rest of the group. They speak at length about their previous misunderstandings and (it is presumed) Mr. Darcy proposes. It is important to note that the proposal itself does not appear on the page, nor do effusive declarations of emotion. Instead, the proposal is understood based on what we see in the chapter that immediately follows, where Elizabeth confesses to Jane that she is engaged to Mr. Darcy. After that we also see a scene where Mr. Bennet questions Elizabeth on her choice. It is interesting that while Elizabeth does declare her feelings for Mr. Darcy in that scene, we see it only in exposition. We never see it in actual dialogue.
“Elizabeth, still more affected, was earnest and solemn in her reply; and, at length, by repeated assurances that Mr. Darcy was really the object of her choice, by explaining the gradual change which her estimation of him had undergone, relating her absolute certainty that his affection was not the work of a day, but had stood the test of many months’ suspense, and enumerating with energy all his good qualities, she did conquer her father’s incredulity, and reconcile him to the match.”
It’s significant that when the professions of love go wrong between Elizabeth and Mr. Darcy—as in the failed proposal—we see the play-by-play through dialogue. Now in the denouement when they finally get together, all of the lovey-dovey moments happen either off the page or in exposition.
This makes sense because the story isn’t really about whether Elizabeth and Mr. Darcy get together. Yes, it seems to be so on the surface, but if we dig below the surface, we discover that the story is really about Elizabeth’s pursuit of happiness. She starts out thinking that her happiness will come from being single and eventually discovers that her happiness will truly come from being married to Mr. Darcy. The author drives that point home when Elizabeth writes to her aunt and tells her: “I am happier even than Jane; she only smiles, I laugh.” This shows us just how profound Elizabeth’s newfound happiness is.
ENDING TYPE: As I mentioned in my last newsletter, there are four possible endings in a story and they depend on the answers to two questions: Does the character get what they want? And do they still want it?
If we look at Pride and Prejudice on the surface level, it appears we have a Change of Heart Ending because Elizabeth starts out wanting nothing more than to stay single. She dislikes Mr. Darcy and rejects his proposal. Then, as the story evolves, she has a change of heart and ends up falling in love with him.
Yet, if we look at the story from the perspective of happiness, it turns out this is a Happy Ending (i.e. where the character gets what they want and they still want it). At the start of the book, Elizabeth believes staying single will bring her happiness, but by the end she realizes that this happiness will come from marrying Mr. Darcy. Considering how that the climax centers around Elizabeth’s pursuit of happiness, it makes sense to look at the story through that lens.
CONCLUSION: There you have it: a detailed analysis of Pride and Prejudice based on the three-act structure, and you can see how perfectly plotted this book is. There is one more detail I wanted to call your attention to: throughout the story, Elizabeth receives three proposals of marriage. The first is the horrible proposal from Mr. Collins, the second is Mr. Darcy’s failed proposal, and the third is the final, successful proposal where she gets her “happily ever after.” These proposals also form a Rule of Three where we have two proposals that are similar, both because they fail and because they happen on the page. The third proposal is successful but we don’t even see it on the page. We see the aftermath of the proposal when Elizabeth tells Jane and later speaks with her father, but the proposal itself is completely off-page. This means that there are actually three Rules of Three in the book.
Until next time, keep writing and keep being awesome!
P.S. For more info on Gabriela Pereira, the founder and instigator of DIY MFA, check out her profile page.
